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The Facts About Tattoo Fade and Removal Creams and Gels


The Rise of the Tattoo - How It Began

In the mid to late 1980's tattoos were becoming the new expression of individuality after the hippie movement of the sixties and seventies began to fade away. Tattoos slowly became more accepted as fears of disease spread through the use of contaminated tattoo equipment subsided , better medical precautions were instituted and local and state regulation of tattoo studios greatly decreased the likely hood of contamination through tattoos.


This abatement of health concerns slowly brought about the widespread acceptance of tattoos among the generations that followed the baby boomers - the Gen X's, the Gen Y's and the MTV generation, which is defined as a cusp generation between the X's and Y's and taking on characteristics of both. Tattoos slowly achieved more acceptance in the culture as popular musicians of the day were seen wearing more and more body art. Soon well known actors were known to have tattoos and eventually more and more skin was used as a canvas of self expression until full sleeve tattoos began their popularity among icons of the pop culture of the day and it became more acceptable for the average Gen X, Gen Y and MTV generation individual to have tattoo art applied to various parts of their bodies. Some opted for extravagant and expensive full sleeves, or to have large areas of their legs and torso covered with tattoos, others were satisfied with smaller expressions of body art, sometimes for the
world to see and sometimes in more discreet locations on the body. As time passed this phenomenon spread through every socio-economic group of the United States and Europe and today it is quite common to see tattoos displayed in our daily lives.


As often happens, some people got tattoos due to peer pressure or on a whim and instantly regretted the tattoo, or as time passed and priorities changed the tattoo that at one time seemed so beautiful and an expression of the way you felt at the time no longer fit your lifestyle. Many times the tattoo regret was caused by the constant reminder of having to look at the name of an ex lover or spouse. It can also be quite inconvenient to have the name of an ex somewhere on your body when you have divorced that person and are about to be remarried.


Profiting From Tattoo Regret

In the 1980's and 1990's business entrepreneurs began to realize that many tattooed people were looking for a way to remove that once beautiful and cherished body art. The problem was lasers were still in their developmental stage and when used were very painful and would most certainly leave a scar in place of the tattoo. During this time not much was known about tattoo removal except for the ages old salabrasion and dermabrasion methods, both of which were painful and left scars. So the
entrepreneurs of the time began developing creams and lotions to make tattoo removal a less mentally and physically traumatic experience. It had been known for many years that skin pigment could be faded by certain chemicals. At that time it was usually a hydroquinone based cream used to fade age spots on hands, freckles that were perceived as imperfections or to just give a more even skin tone to the appearance of ones' face. It wasn't long before the tattoo removal entrepreneurs decided the same
skin pigment fading formulas could be sold as a tattoo fade or removal cream. They realized that they could sell small quantities that lasted a month or two with the understanding, stated on the label, that it would take several months to fade or remove a tattoo and all they had to do is repackage an existing product that they could sell over and over again to the same people at a much higher price than when the same product was sold and packaged as a simple skin fade cream.


The more honest of these entrepreneurs soon realized that all the cream did was fade the melanin or skin pigment in the area above the tattoo which initially created the impression that the tattoo itself was fading when in reality it was only the top layer of skin that was fading and the tattoo pigment was not being effected. The less scrupulous continued marketing these products knowing full well they were selling something that would never fade or remove a tattoo.


Skin Fade Creams Never Come in Contact with Tattoo Pigments

To make a tattoo permanent the ink must be injected into the second layer of skin or the dermis. Skin fade creams have only the ability to penetrate the top layer of skin, the epidermis, where the melanin producing cells live. Fade creams do not have the ability to penetrate through the epidermis to the dermis where the tattoo pigment settles and becomes “encased”in fibroblasts, a form of connective tissue that among other things is responsible for the production of collagen fibers which give skin that smooth and youthful appearance.


One thing that must be understood about skin fade creams is they were made to target melanocytes which are the cells that produce melanin, the chemical in skin that determines skin color. Sunlight stimulates the melanocytes and causes them to produce melanin which results in what we call a tan. The higher the concentration of melanocytes the more melanin is produced and the darker the skin. Fewer melanocytes means a lighter complexion and this all takes place in the first layer of skin. Skin
fade creams are limited to reacting with Melanocytes in the first layer of skin to inhibit the production of skin pigment, but for a short period of time it gives the impression and appearance of fading tattoo pigment as the melanin above the tattoo begins to fade. It may take up to 3 months and $200 to $300 before the customer realizes he/she has been duped.


The Reason Tattoo Fade Creams/Gels Do Not Fade Tattoos

  • In order to fade a tattoo a product must have the ability to penetrate the skin to the depth of the tattoo itself. Skin fade creams were not made to go that deep, they target the melanocytes in the first layer.
  • Also there is no reason for a skin fade cream to penetrate beyond the epidermis layer because that is where 98% of the melanocytes exist.
  • We are all the same color below the epidermis. The dermis layer contains only sweat glands, small blood vessels called capillaries, hair follicles, sebaceous glands (skin oil), nerve endings and when we get a tattoo it contains and “holds” the tattoo pigment making it a permanent part of the dermis.
  • Skin fade creams/gels are not capable of fading or removing the minerals and chemicals used in tattoo pigment.


Unlike lasers, ipl, tca or injectable tattoo displacement creams such as Rejuvi, tattoo fade creams do not remove ink through intense heat, skin peeling or ink displacement, they claim to work by bleaching the tattoo pigment which would mean:

  1. That the product must first reach the tattoo, which it does not, and
  2. How is it possible to remove an embedded tattoo by using a skin pigment bleach on tattoo pigments which consist of iron oxide (rust), carbon, soot, cinnabar, cadmium, lead chromate or copper, just to name a few tattoo pigment ingredients?


The answer is: It is unproven in any independent Medical Study because it is mostly likely impossible.


Depending on the colors of your tattoo the pigment will be made up of many different minerals and chemicals including:

  • Black ink - iron oxide, carbon, magnetite crystals and soot
  • Brown- iron oxide and clay
  • Red pigments - cinnabar, cadmium, and iron oxide, also known as rust. Red pigments are most likely to carry the risk of allergic reactions.
  • Orange - disazodiarylide, disazopyrazolone or cadmium seleno-sulfide.
  • Yellows - cadmium yellow, ochres, curcuma yellow, chrome yellow or curcumin.
  • Green - chromium oxide, malachite, lead chromate, copper/alumuninum phthalocyanine or
    copper phthalocyanine or/and potassium ferrocyanide and ferric (iron) ferrocyanide.
  • Blue - cobalt, copper, azurite, sodium aluminum silicate and other minerals to numerous to mention.
  • Violet – manganese, quinacridone, dioxazine/carbazole and various aluminum salts.
  • White – lead carbonate, titanium dioxide, barium sulfate or zinc oxide. Also white is used to
    dilute the intensity of other pigments.

In addition to the above list of minerals and chemicals used to create tattoo pigments many manufacturers use ABS plastic because to the vibrancy of color created by the use plastic in tattoo pigments.


The New Tattoo Pigment Fading Gels


The new generation of skin fade gels, which use new ingredients to inhibit the production of skin pigment probably work quite well. The problem is these products are marketed using the exact same ingredients as tattoo fade gels which is highly deceptive. They still do not have the ability to bleach away tattoo pigments containing iron oxide (rust), carbon, soot, cinnabar, cadmium, lead chromate, lead carbonate, copper, manganese, titanium dioxide or zinc oxide or ABS plastic. Repackaging the
same ingredients to perform two entirely different tasks is probably great for Return On Investment, but bad for the consumer especially considering the the poor guarantee offered on the product, so poor in fact as to be virtually useless.


It's the latest version of the “New and Improved” advertising industry spin to sell the same product in a different package.


If True Where Does The Ink Go??

For the sake of argument, let's assume that what the tattoo removal creams say is true, that the ink just slowly fades away. Then where does it go? With laser removal some ink is absorbed into the nearest lymph node and some rises to the surfaces in the blistered skin. With TCA removal the ink is slowly peeled away and removed from the surface of the skin. IPL is similar to laser. The Rejuvi method displaces the ink by injecting a proprietary cream into the tattoo forcing the ink to the surface. But
where does tattoo fade cream/gel tattoo ink disappear to? It's not burned out like lasers and IPL. It's not peeled out from the surface like TCA products because the creams do not cause peeling. It's not “displaced” like the Rejuvi method, so where could it possibly go? None of the cream/gel manufacturers actually say. Are all those mineral and chemical pigments totally absorbed by the body posing an unknown health risk at some point in the future? Is it somehow pulled to the surface of the skin and evaporated into the atmosphere? Does the cream somehow cause the tattoo pigments to rise to the surface and be sloughed off with the skin cells we lose every day? Is it simply bleached to a clear or opaque consistency and simply stay in place, invisible to the naked eye?


Protect Yourself – Read the Guarantee

An indication of a company's confidence in the effectiveness of the product they are selling is the quality of the guarantee offered with each purchase.


Tattoo fade cream and gel facts to be aware of include:


Where's the Proof - Long Term Product Medical Studies

Tattoo removal creams and gels make claims on the effectiveness of their products, but have never produced an actual Medical Study backing up their claims. If such a study existed you would know about it and it would be constantly referenced in their advertisements. One company claims they have been conducting a study for at least two years, but refuse to release any results claiming proprietary information would be at risk. Proprietary information can always be with held if the study actually exists. Claims are easy to make, but they should be backed up with proof.